Access, Not Oil, Fuels China's South China Sea Policy

摘要

China's encroachment in the South China Sea for more than 40 years has much more impact on freedom of navigation and international confrontations than on pursuit of resources. While it has been staking territorial rights to oil- and gas-rich island regions also claimed by multiple countries, the Middle Kingdom has been employing maritime forces ranging from fishing boats to Coast Guard and People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) vessels in ways that suggest expanded control over oceangoing traffic.